Having affirmed his desire to spare the two of them, Claud decided to give Seven a piece of some dried meat, since the poor guy’s body language was close to begging for it. Slicing some out with mana, Claud handed the meat to Seven, who handled it like a piece of ultra-expensive glassware.

After watching him have fun with it, Claud turned his attention to Thirteen, whose scythe was spinning in a weird, drunken manner. He could also feel her gaze on his slab of meat, and after scowling once, Claud cut out another piece and handed it to her.

As it turned out, displaying kindness once was just asking to be exploited over and over again, since those assholes couldn’t be satisfied with just one slab of meat. Claud didn’t know how they could even have the heart to ask for more non-vocally, but his heart was feeling a little soft after he remembered that he had screwed them out of the rewards for Phase 2.

“Phase 3…I wonder who’s going to show up,” Claud muttered.

“There are some places reserved for special people, but other than that, it’s the strongest people in the world right now. However, these people will also include the remnants of past eras, like the Chromatic Lords, so we can see a bunch of octa-folders and ennea-folders. Definitely not a fun prospect,” Seven explained.

“Danger. Caution.”

Claud felt his lips twitch at the overly succinct summary of the newcomers in Phase 3, but he couldn’t help but think about the Chromatic Lords. Those fellows were people who failed to reach the true heights of divinity, but rather than a final stand against the Coloured Gods, they simply surrendered and joined their banners. They were also the people who, according to rumour, killed off anyone who completed the Third Tutorial…until now, anyway.

As for whether they would continue to get rid of septa-folders, that was up in the air. Whatever the case, however, Claud knew that the possibility of the newcomers turning hostile was very high. It was a shame that he literally had no countermeasures for Phase 3, but the condition of being prepared was having information to begin with.

It was a risk that he would have to brave.

Fuming at his lack of connections, Claud stared at the world below again. He had fired Absolute One once — did Lily see his message? Was she also looking up at the white moon whenever night fell? What reactions did she have, and how did the rest of the world respond?

Claud touched his chest. He really wanted to just jump off and find her right now, but he knew that for the sake of a better future, he had to stay. Those two buffoons, who probably didn’t have anyone who occupied his heart in such totality, definitely wouldn’t understand his thoughts…

Sighing, Claud finished off his dried meat before the callous buffoons asked for more with their body language. Picking up his bottle, he took a hearty swig from it, and then continued to look at the Lacuna Dukedom, or in its general direction anyway.

The world below began to drift away, and Claud found himself losing interest as a new continent came into sight. While he may have been interested in the other continents, he was around two hundred times more interested in staring at Lily’s current location.

He would think about staring elsewhere when he returned to Lily’s side.

Rolling onto his back, Claud looked up at the sky and found himself doubting life. The passage of time drifted on, much like his consciousness, and he dimly watched as everyone else began to rest in their own ways too.

This state lasted for an indeterminate amount of time, before a set of squares appeared in Claud’s vision once more. All around the trial grounds, everyone jerked and sat up in concord without any prior arrangement, and Claud focused his gaze on the trials for Phase 3.

[Mission: Bridging the Aeon Span (Phase 3)

Mission Introduction: The end of the cycle approaches, and with it the cessation of all life. However, the foundation to the new eternity, which was painstakingly laid down, has been despoiled by orphaned intruders of another world. What was once a docile creation has gained a will of rebellion. Quash that will and subordinate that new world to your own, before it can fully integrate into the new world.

Mission requirements: Imprint the errant Cosmic Egg with your mana within forty-eight hours.

Personal Mission Contribution: 0%

Overall Mission Progress: 0%

Prize Pool: 25000 years of lifespan.

Additional remarks: By using your mana, you can also erase imprints created by other people, which lowers their personal mission contribution. For every ten percent of your personal mission contribution, your Aeon Folds increase by three.]

[Omen Mission: Shattering the cycle (Phase 3)

Mission Introduction: The end of the cycle approaches, and with it the cessation of all life. Under your efforts, you have succeeded in carving open a world of infinite possibility with your own two hands. However, the flame of rebellion and independence is weak and flickering. Protect it from impure winds, and see its resistance through to the end.

Mission requirements: Your imprint occupies at least 50% of the Cosmic Egg when the trial ends.

Mission reward: is raised by a certain number of ranks, based on your performance at the end of Phase 3. Your lifespan is increased based on your performance at the end of Phase 3. You will be awarded a certain number of Fragments of Fate, based on your performance at the end of Phase 3.

Additional remarks: Failure to complete this mission will result in unfathomable consequences for all life. Be aware that you are the enemy of every other Bearer of Destiny present. If your identity is discovered, they will attack you.]

Claud looked at the Omen Mission, and then felt a small grin climb onto his face. While he was by no means a master, he had the ultimate skill for surviving stupid skirmishes like this — his Presence Nullification. He had more than enough skillsticks to ensure that he had a week’s worth of hiding, so…

Clearly, the Trial of Aeons really, really wanted the Omen to win for some reason. Claud had no intention of turning down that free 25000 years of lifespan; it was his ticket to divinity. All that was left was to nab the damn thing and to keep snapping skillsticks once it began. It didn’t sound hard to him at all, and while there were probably some risks…

A small frown crawled up his face. Even if the Frozen Emperor did the same thing as him, the dude had nearly a million years of lifespan. How on Orb did he get that much lifespan? After all, this mission only gave 25000 years of lifespan. The Moonlit and Shadowed Victory missions gave 15000 too — a six-digit lifespan was nothing short of patently ridiculous.

He looked through the missions again, and then nodded. Once the trial began, it would either be a bloodbath or a standoff. Claud didn’t know which was the better outcome, but since it was an all-out battle, Absolute One was no longer off the table.

“Hmm. So? Seems like it’s every folder for themselves here,” Claud muttered. “We might end up fighting.”

“I’ll be honest.” Seven raised his hands. “I don’t want to fight you. My instincts tell me that I’ll get obliterated if I do. You held off that tide for seven days, but you’re still bright and happy.”

“Affirmative.”

“Heck, even my curse has grown tired,” Seven muttered. “But the aura I sense from you is so lively that I don’t even know where to begin.”

Claud eyed the Seventh Bearer of Destiny. He didn’t know which Coloured God had the fortune to be his master, but this guy had a good eye for judging things…the only issue was his mouth, which was apparently cursed or something. Whatever the case, the boyish young man and the scythe-wielding woman had expressed their desire to not compete with him. Whether it was real or not Claud had no idea, but he wasn’t going to put that much faith in those two.

There was trust, and then there was basic common sense.

Nodding at the duo, Claud got up slowly. Now that the missions had been announced, what remained was the summoning of the twenty extra individuals. After that, the final phase of the trial would start, and chaos would break loose…probably. Claud didn’t have a complete plan on how he would approach this trial, but he had the nagging feeling that if one of those Chromatic Lords got their nasty hands on it, getting it back would be a lot harder.

As an interesting plan rolled into his head, lights began to fill the venue, and multiple silhouettes popped into existence. Claud, who was in the middle of finagling his new plan, glanced at the normal-looking newcomers, and then did a spit-take when he saw not just two, but three familiar faces.

Strangling the urge to curse, Claud looked at Holy Son Nero, Holy Daughter Clarissa and…Dia. There was definitely someone out of place there, and it wasn’t because Clarissa was around two hundred years older than the other two fellows.

Controlling his body, Claud touched his face, checking that the mask was still on his face. Even though his facial expressions couldn’t be seen, he still had to be careful. If the two of them noticed anything odd, they could draw a few inferences here and there, and Claud definitely didn’t need that at all.

Making sure to control himself well, Claud gazed at the three familiar faces.

Why were they here?